Welcome to Gaia! ::

Morning came soon enough. Sunlight was streaming into the room now, which was rare given they normally woke up ahead of it to go for a run. Not today, though.

Nate was happily tucked in close against Seren, his arm loosely wrapped around her. The AC was already kicking in, trying to cool the room down from the awful heat that was already starting to bear down on them for the day. He didn't think too much of it, and instead nuzzled into her hair.

Clearly he had no plans to get out of bed just yet.

Seren's eyes opened slowly, sighing happily. She had had her best night's sleep in days, between their... Relaxing activities before sleep, and the fact that she was in his arms again. She really needed nights like this more often.

She shoved that thought back, trying not to let it flood her mind, because if she did she would tense up and she knew he'd notice. So she carefully controlled her body, making sure she stayed calm and relaxed in his arms.

Until he moved, or her bladder forced her to do so, she was going nowhere.

The more he woke the tighter his arms went around her, hands feathering against her skin as he moved. "Morning," he murmured with a small smile as he pulled her in a bit tighter to him. Mornings like this truly were perfect, he thought, and how they ought to always be. Like her, until they absolutely had to, he wasn't going anywhere.

"How'd you sleep?"

Her lips curved into a smile as his arms tightened around her. That comforting feeling, the feeling of knowing he loved having her as close as she possibly could be, both falling asleep and when they woke up in the morning.

"Morning, gorgeous." She murmured back, snuggling back in close to him, feeling the skin of his chest pressing tight to her back. Skin to skin, it could be sexual but in this moment it was not, just incredibly cozy and comforting.

"Wonderful Best night's sleep is always a night in your arms."

"Agreed," he said as he curled around her, soon pressing a little kiss to her shoulder. "I almost don't wanna get out of bed." He was content to lay with her all day, cozy and comfortable in each other's arms. It was hard to imagine he'd gone so many weeks without mornings like this.

His mind settled on the fact for a long moment before he tried to push them out. No reason to let it spoil the mood, after all.

"We didn't have plans, right? Would you be opposed to just staying in today?"

"I feel the same, though we do need to for Lil Man's sake at some point, at minimum." She said, laughing softly and just sighing happily at the fact that they had the ability to just cuddle basically as long as they wanted, outside of things like food and Remy's needs.

She hoped he would leave his phone off until after they woke up on Monday morning, and not give in to the temptation check it. She knew it was challenging on him at times.

"Not that I know of, love. Just time together this weekend. And why not? The fridge is stocked, we have everything we need so we don't have to go anywhere we don't want to."

"I'll take care of him," he said, going over Remy's morning routine in his mind. In their years together she'd stuck faithfully to the routine he'd set from before they met, and he was incredibly grateful for it. He knew he had failings with their pup, too, and that some part of the weekend should be given to spending a good chunk of time with him.

"Been a minute since we got any quality time together." That said, the man still snuggled into her shoulder, pressing little kisses as he did. "Wanna earmark some time just for him."

Her agreement too his plan had him smiling, and he gave her a little squeeze. "Perfect. I'll keep my phone off, then. They might call you, though. Just a heads up. But as promised, I'm all yours for this weekend, so don't worry."

"Mmm if you insist, I won't argue." She said, chuckling softly. It was not hard to take good care of their lovely boy, even before Remy was theirs, and instead just his. Remy was, after all, such an important part of how they came together, and how they bonded. He was their pup-child, and she loved him as much as Nate, even if in an entirely different way.

"Mmm makes sense to me, I know Remy has missed you as much as I did." She shivered a bit at the kisses, because it felt so nice to feel him there. She was not rushing for anything like what they were up to before bed... But the snuggles and the kisses were beautiful.

And then he said that part about her phone. "Well then..." She pulled free, just a little, to grab her phone off the nightstand. She sent her brother a text to let him know she was turning it off, for a weekend of relaxation, then did exactly that, before popping it back on the table. "That issue is solved."

She then snuggled back in and cuddled in as close as she could.

He cracked an eye open when she momentarily pulled away, watched her turn off her device as well, and when she snuggled back in again he couldn't help but laugh lightly into her hair.

"God, I love you, Seren." And he went back to the snuggles and kisses, because she deserved to be cherished and lavished upon.

She grinned wide at hearing his laughter, because she loved the sound of it, loved knowing she could make him laugh, make him smile, make him happy. Any moment where she knew her actions had caused him some kind of joy were the moments she fought to have. He made her so happy, whenever he could, she wanted to do the same for him.

"I love you too, Nate. Always and forever. You're my everything, babe." She said, with a simple honesty emphasizing those words and how much she meant them. She gave a soft, happy sigh, relaxing into the adoration he was lavishing upon her, enjoying it as much for the fact that it was an expression of his love as for the simple pleasure of the contact.

The brunette happily indulged himself in her, in their time spent together, for as long as she would let him. Each smile, each touch, each kiss. Every little thing about her gave him joy. She was his happiness, his everything, and he couldn't picture his life without her.

It was always easy to lose track of time when they were together, but eventually he knew he had to pull away. "Bladder, pup," he said, lips still on her shoulder for one last little kiss before he finally had to move away.

She eventually had turned over, wanting to see his face, to return the gentle kisses and caresses, so that they could see each other's smiles and the happiness in their eyes. It seemed to last forever, the quiet peaceful time of just gently showing each other they loved each other.

And also it felt like no time at before he pulled away to take care of necessities. "Alright... I'll be here, either in the bed or in the shower, when you return... Feel free to join me wherever."

She watched his beautiful nude body walk away, and to remind him of how attractive she found him, she softly whistled after him... The flopped back to wait until she heard him leave the bathroom. She got up herself, kissing his cheek as she passed, and went in, getting herself nicely cleaned up... And figuring that the time it would take him to feed the boy and let him out would not be too long.

She hoped not, it had been a good while since they had been able to take a shower together.

Showers together had become fewer and farther between as their schedules, particularly his, didn't allow for too much time for indulgences like it. Nate, for his part, always enjoyed this simple yet intimate activity of it. He missed having this kind of time with her, so when they finally finished he was almost reluctant to step out. Their day was just starting, but he found his thoughts were tending toward the half-empty side of things.

'That much close to our weekend being over.'

He moved to the sink to get started on his post-shower routine, sighing softly to himself as it sank in. The answer was simple: take more time off. For him, for whatever reason, that seemed to be easier said than done.

She followed him out of the shower, having enjoyed the gentle intimacies of bathing each other, an action that only those who truly trusted each other could enjoy to the fullest. She wrapped herself up in the bathrobe he had bought her some years ago as a gift, and then began to work her way through the task of drying and braiding her hair, before she moved next to him, pressing a soft and loving kiss to his cheek, before reaching for her skincare products.

She began to work, then noticed he seemed lost in thought, and not entirely happy about it. She wasn't sure what had triggered it, but after a moment of thought, she murmured "I love you, gorgeous."

He was still quietly lost in thought by the time Seren joined him, but the cheek kiss and her murmured words brought him back to the present. Back to her. And he smiled, soft at first but quickly turning playful as he glanced in her direction. "Love you, too, beautiful," came his reply before he started cleaning up his beard.

Now present and actively shoving the negative thoughts to the back of his mind, Nate made quick work of his routine.

"It's probably closer to brunch. What do you think we should have?"

She saw the way his expression seemed to brighten, and she felt glad to know that whatever had made him look tense or concerned, her words still helped him feel better. And his response had her smiling, cheeks a light pink. She kept working on her skincare, but kept half an eye on him, in case he started looking unhappy again

His question had her looking thoughtful for a long moment, then said "I know you talked about staying in but... What if we go out for brunch? To the place we had our first 'out' date at? It's been a long time since we have gone there."

He was towards the end of his routine by then, and when she made the suggestion he nodded, not needing even a second to give it any thought. "I like that idea," he said, turning so he could press quick kiss to hair (since she was in the middle of her skincare stuff, too). "Let's do it. Remind me, do they allow dogs? Maybe we could take Remy out with us."

"It was your favorite place back then, I told think you would remember, silly!" She teased him, but then looked thoughtful. "But I don't recall... Do they have a patio? Maybe we should call and check?" She finished putting on the last layer of products, and stretched, before heading to the door of the bathroom, thinking about what she was going to wear for today's brunch.

She moved to their closet and stepped in, taking her robe off and hanging it on the hook she had for it, before staring at everything. Finally she leaned back out the door, intentionally giving him a nicely teasing view of her breasts as she did. "Babe, can you grab me my matching black lace bra and panty set from the top of my drawer set, and pop it on the bed?"

The bra in that set was a nice balconette, which meant she could wear one of her pretty summer dresses that had a lower cut without worrying about her bra showing.

She then turned and went back to her selection of dresses... And selected one that was a pretty light pink, with purple flowers printed on it, then grabbed a set of cute wedge sandals, before heading back into the room.

"Oh, you overestimate me, madam." He purposely made it sound like a line from a TV show, and he was grinning, clearly meaning it as a joke. In his normal voice he continued, "I'll give 'em a call once I'm dressed."

He stepped out shortly after her, going straight toward the dresser for his underwear. He glanced her way when she called to him, catching the teasing view and wolf whistling when he did. "Sure thing, love," he said with a wink, then proceeded to do just that before going on to find his own clothes.

He settled with a nice pair of khaki shorts, a green, short-sleeved button-up, and a pair of white Chucks. Once dressed, he stepped outside to make a phone call using the landline. For once.

His cell phone was going to stay off.

"Thanks baby!" She called to him, and then moved to get dressed, then sighed at herself for not grabbing a pair of tights. She went over to the same drawer set, wearing only the bra and panties, and leaned down, getting a pair out, without thinking about the view he might get if he walked back in when she was doing that... Not that she minded, giving him lovely views was something she enjoyed doing.

His timing seemed to be on point today, as he peeked into the room as she was leaning down. The smile on his face was telling enough, but he took a mental snapshot before speaking.

"They do, as long as you're okay with the patio. It's hot out, but not the highs yet. Probably might be close to it after we're done. What do you think?"

She turned when he spoke, blinking at the grin on his face, but not connecting, and instead she focused on getting dressed. "Hmmm well we're going to drive over, so we'll have AC on the way back... But will Little Man overheat out there? That's my biggest concern."

She moved to the bed again, and settled down, to pull on her tights. Once they were up to her thighs, she stood again, and finished pulling them up, before slipping her feet into the sandals, then tying up the ribbons that helped them stay on. Finally, she pulled the dress on over her head, wiggling it into place, before grabbing her purse, but ignoring her phone... It was staying here, and staying off too. "So what do you think?" She asked, as she put on her favorite lipstick.

He stayed at the door and watched her get dressed. The word "happy" ought to have been stamped on his forehead, and he honestly felt he could just watch her all day long and he'd be perfectly content.

"His coat's thinned out for the summer, so as long as he's in the shade and has a bowl of ice water I think he can handle a couple hours in the heat."

At her question, his expression brightened. "Very cute, babe. You look perfect."

She was nodding along to his comments, but when he answered her like that, she looked at him in confusion for a long moment, then her expression cleared and she began to laugh. When she managed to stop laughing, she gave him a warm, loving smile. "I'm glad you approve of my outfit, sorry for being unclear though... I meant what do you think about bringing him? Should we or not?"

She walked over to him and hugged him close, loving her handsome, sweet man with all of her heart.

Nate found himself laughing alongside her, though he wasn't sure what was so funny until she explained. He chuckled still, glad that the misunderstanding happened to also work in his favor. He opened his arms for her when she approached, and hugged her right back.

"Mm. I think that still worked out for me," he said of the bit of confusion, "but as for Remy, yeah. We should bring. Been a while since we've had a family outing."

She beamed up at him from his arms, happy at the fact that they were having such a delightful morning together, happy to hear him laugh and see him smile.

"Alright. Why don't you go get the car on and the AC for us, while I get Remy ready to go?"

She leaned up, kissed his cheek (she was so glad that her lipstick now came in a long wear format that didn't leave marks everywhere) and then gently pulled free, to go get Remy's gear for going out, which had the silly boy getting all excited and running over to the couch, which she often had him stand on when she got him ready... She didn't have to lean over for as long this way.

He enjoyed every bit of affection she gave him, and so was beaming by the time she let go. "Sounds good," he said, and on the way out he planted a kiss on her cheek, as well as to their pup's head, before he went out the door and down to the car, which he hopped into and quickly cranked the AC to get it down to a tolerable temperature.

She was soon coming along after him, Remy bouncing along at her heels. She locked all the doors behind them, and soon was out to the car. She got Remy settled in the back seat, then slipped into the front passenger and grinned at him as she buckled up.

"Let's go, I'm starving today. All that exercise with you last night..." That second half was said in a little teasing tone, and she winked, then went back to behaving... She didn't want him distracted while driving after all. "And I could use a cuppa."

He waggled his brows. "We should stock up on food for this weekend, then," he said as he shifted into drive and started them off to the diner. "The nav says we'll be there in twenty, so hang tight, babe."

And sure enough, in roughly that length of time they were pulling up to the old diner. The place was clearly stubborn as well as timeless, refusing to change even the teensiest bit over the many years it had been up. It was comforting, really. Another sort of constant, even if he wasn't as much of a regular as before. Seren's cooking, in his opinion, always trumped diner food.

"I'll get Remy," he said as he got out.

She began to laugh hard at his suggestive comment and the implied plans for the weekend. "Well then, I suggest we drop Remy off at home when we're done and run to the store, just in case."

She relaxed in the car ride over, enjoying the sights of Destiny City in the summer, even if it was ridiculously hot out. The other view she enjoyed, of course, was him. The sight of him driving them places was always something that indicated they were getting time together, time to relax and enjoy themselves.

Her brain caught up to the fact that they were there when he started to speak and move. "Mmm? Oh, oh yeah ok. Sounds good, babe."

She grinned at him, then got out, heading for the door to check them in while he got the boyo. She mentioned her preference for the outside, and luckily, there were already tables available out there, because a lot of other people didn't want to be outside in this weather. She followed the young man to the table and waved when she saw Nate looking for her. She asked the man to have their server send them a bowl of ice water for the pup, then took the menus and sat down.

Remy was wriggling with excitement and Nate had to take him for a little pitstop at a nearby bush, but it added only a couple minutes to the trip from car to the diner. Once inside, he headed straight to where Seren was seated, then quickly got Remy situated before he settled in beside her.

“Know what you want yet, babe?” he asked her, slipping his arm around her waist as he leaned in to take a look at the menu himself.

Seren was grateful they had a big sunshade over the patio, it made the outside seating more comfortable... Less direct sun after all, and for her, less chance of a sunburn. Sure, she has her sunscreen on, she never forgot to put it on, but it only lasted for so long after all... And smiled at the young woman who brought the water bowl. She set it down for Remy, then browsed the menu.

When Nate joined her, she gave him a bright smile and then a cheek kiss when he sat down.

"I'm thinking... A waffle maybe. With fruit. Strawberry or apple, haven't yet decided... And some sausage for protein." She controlled the urge to make a naughty comment, but a wicked sparkle might appear in her eyes for a moment. "Plus an iced mocha."

He naturally gravitated toward her, perhaps it was a subconscious desire to be as near to her as was reasonable in any given situation. So he was leaning into her just a little bit, particularly after the cheek kiss, which had him beaming as he browsed.

The protein comment had him glance her way, and he caught the sparkle. So he leaned in just a bit further and whispered something to the effect of having all the protein she would ever need, and he kissed her cheek before sitting up straight again.

“Sounds tasty,” he said with a little nod. “Think I’ll stick to my usual eggs bene with a side of crepes. And as a treat for the pup…”

She arched a brow at his comment, and let him continue, her expression amused, and when he finished, she leaned in to whisper in turn. "More salty than protein, love, and I don't think you have enough to spare, given the exercise we both do..." She glanced around for a moment, making sure no one was looking their way, then nipped his earlobe, before going back to appearing to browse the menu, expression entirely innocent and blank of what she had said or done.

"Mmm you do love your bennies, don't you?" She chuckled softly, thinking in her head that her lover was adorable in how predictable he could be, but nothing showed on her face. "And oh? Actually letting him have human food today? You're really going all out to make sure he knows you missed him." Her tone was loving and supportive, no hint of anything negative.

He felt a zip of pleasure run through him, between her words and the n** to his ear, but like her he kept his expression controlled to just show his amusement and enjoyment of their little banter. He did pull her a little closer to him, though, and began to trace absent lines where his hand rested on her waist.

“Yeah,” he went on to say, glancing down at the boyo who was idling at their feet, eyes facing out toward the street. “I feel like I gotta make it up to him, me being not around so much. I don’t like the idea of him being used to it, either.”

She barely kept herself from shivering at the way he was running his fingers along her, because it felt really good. She rather hoped they'd come to take the order abd drinks soon, so that he'd have his hands busy... As much as she loved this, they were in public and this outfit was a little thin.

She didn't want to get pointy in front and have strangers notice. That was for him, and him alone, in her opinion.

"Fair enough, I was just amused. What are you thinking? Bacon, since it won't have any spices that are bad for him?" Her tone was casual, despite the feelings flowing through her.

He noted the way she shivered with a knowing little smile, which he directed strictly at her now that he wasn't actually looking over the menu anymore. Her enjoyment could only add onto his, so for both their sakes he steadied his hand after leaning in for a little kiss.

"More of that later, then," he whispered as he was pulling away, still smiling.

And as though nothing had happened he went on to answer her other question. "Yeah, bacon. Maybe ask for some veggies if they can swing it, just to keep it a little balanced for him."

She made a mmmmm sound into the kiss and murmured back "Well we need to drop off Remy, then go to the store... But perhaps we should think about somewhere to stop, for... Hmmm... A bit."

She leaned back, as well, her brows lifted with just a hint of suggestion on her face before going back to normal, and then nodded at what he was saying about Remy.

And then the server came by. She placed her order with the young woman, then left Nate to do the rest.

For a moment he forgot about everyone and everything around them. He focused solely on Seren, from her response to the way she leaned back to what it sounded like she was suggesting...

It would have been a near impossible task to wipe the smile off his face in that moment.

And then their waitress came and he snapped back into the present at the intrusion of the unfamiliar voice. He was perfectly pleasant, of course. Pleasant enough for him, anyway. He placed an order for himself and went over options to serving the pup some food. It took a moment, but they managed a decent plate just for him, and Nate expressed his thanks before glancing back to Seren.

"What were we talking about again?"

She ducked her head a little, to hide the wicked grin on her face from the server and anyone nearby, but she knew he was close enough to catch a hint of it.

His reaction was perfect, too, and she was looking forwards to them getting a chance to indulge in something they only rarely had time and a place to... Enjoy the naughty thrill they loved.

She thanked the server, when she was done, and then turned back to Nate. "Hmmm so perhaps start thinking about places. Anyways, we should maybe get him some new toys while out, too. He's been using his hard when we're both out for the day."

She didn't comment on the fact that she knew it was because he REALLY missed Nate... She wasn't going to add to his guilt burden.

Oh, he saw the grin. And he was looking forward to pressing her more about it a little bit later. For now they could have brunch, so he let it go with a nod when she suggested he start thinking of places. He settled for just holding her hand while they spoke. It was innocent enough, so long as neither of decided to actually try and make it more than that.

There was one place he was hoping they'd revisit someday, though in broad daylight that was highly unlikely.

He glanced down at the pup, who was now taking a drink of his water, and gave another nod. "Yeah. Since he's with us he can come and pick out a few at the store."

She gave his hand a gentle squeeze when he took her hand, then shifted a little to lean gently against him, enjoying the fact that it wasn't too hot yet to enjoy snuggling with him. Her head rested on his shoulder as she watched people walking by, or eating.

It was so nice to just relax with him, whether in the privacy of their own room, or in public, like now. She silently prayed that his work life would calm down soon, so that she could have more moments like this. She didn't say anything, she didn't give any signs that she was even thinking about it, but she kept that silent prayer deep in her mind and heart.

"Mmm been a long time since we brought him along to pick something for himself. He will definitely enjoy that."

"It has, yeah," he said, sitting back though his eyes stayed on Remy. He missed his pup, and he was at least mildly aware that these weird habits he was picking up was in part due to his constant and extended absence from home. This weekend was just a small apology, a chance to make it up to both Seren and Remy. Hopefully they felt the sincerity behind it.

He did his best to focus on Seren throughout brunch, and it wasn't hard at all. It was nice to have this time with her. They used to be able to come out more often; he could only hope that things could go back to how they were at that time. They just had more time together.

By the end his mind had been put off from all the negative again, and he was smiling and content and just enjoying the family time.

"Pet store, then home, then grocery?" he asked as they walked out. "Right?"